X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 1 [Paperback]

Scott Lobdell (Author), John Francis Moore (Author), Brian K. Vaughan (Author), Howard Mackie (Author), Ralph MacChio (Author), Terry Kavanagh (Author), Judd Winick (Author)

Book Description

Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic

It begins here! The critically acclaimed, fan-favorite storyline that rocked the X-Men Universe to its core is collected across four volumes! In a cracked-mirror world ruled by the genocidal mutant despot Apocalypse, only one hope remains: Magneto and his Astonishing X-Men! The first in a four volume series collecting the entire Age of Apocalypse storyline.

Product Details

• Paperback: 376 pages
• Publisher: Marvel; Direct Ed edition (May 3, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785117148
• ISBN-13: 978-0785117148
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 0.5 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #313,088 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 54 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Should NOT have been Book 1, August 25, 2005

By 

Justin Gaines (Northern Virginia) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 1 (Paperback)

I was a big fan of the Age of Apocalypse story when it originally came out, and was happy to see that Marvel was collecting the storyline in a series of trade paperbacks. What I don't understand is the logic behind the issues collected in volume 1. This should have been the start of the saga and been comprised of X-Men Alpha and a couple of the more important limited series like Astonishing X-Men, Factor X, or Amazing X-Men. Instead, Marvel packaged all of the random throwaway AoA stories like the Blink limited series and an X-Man annual. These aren't bad stories, and most should have been part of the collections, but certainly not in book 1. This volume would have been more appropriate as a follow-up book to the real AoA series. Maybe it makes sense from a marketing perspective, since if these stories were collected in a later volume it might have been easier for fans to skip it altogether. It certainly doesn't make sense from a storyline point of view though.

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic storyline, poorly packaged, October 11, 2005

By 

N. Durham "Big Evil" (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 1 (Paperback)

Of all the storylines (many of which were actually pretty lame) to occur during the 90's run of various X-Men books, nothing was better than the Age of Apocalypse. The Age of Apocalypse storyline (has it really been 10 years?) began when Professor Xavier's illegitamite son David "Legion" Haller traveled back in time to kill Magneto so his father's dream of human and mutant unity would come true. Legion accidnetly killed Xavier, thus altering history forever. In an era of no X-Men, Apocalypse took over America, and the only ones to oppose him are Magneto and his team of X-Men. The alternate reality setting surprisingly worked out well, as heroes became villains (Cyclops, Beast, Havok), villains became heroes (Sabretooth), and classic characters were given apocalyptic (no pun intended) makeovers. Marvel has decided to re-print the complete epic in seperate volumes, but sadly, Book 1 doesn't include any of the various 4-issue series' that replaced the regular X-books (Astonishing X-Men, Amazing X-Men, Weapon X, Factor-X, Generation Next, X-Calibre, Gambit & The X-Ternals, X-Man, etc.) but instead compiles various one-shots, a special X-Man issue, and the Blink mini-series among others. As a previous reviewer stated, the AOA storyline should have been re-printed the way it was originally released, beginning with the intro X-Men: Alpha one-shot, the various series', and the finale X-Men: Omega, with the issues collected here scattered between. The issues collected here aren't bad, including the Factor-X one-shot in which Cyclops meets his real father Corsair, with tragic results that really show how dystopian this alternate reality is. All in all, if you missed these issues and were a fan of the storyline, you may want to give this a look, but it's up to you if it is worth laying down this much cash for it.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars First Half is great, but Vol. 2 should be read first..., November 16, 2005

By 

R. Hall "Dazed Genoshan" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: X-Men: The Complete Age of Apocalypse Epic, Book 1 (Paperback)

The Age of Apocalypse was the high mark for the X-Men (and company) in the 1990s, and can in many ways be considered the climax of the X-Men saga.

Professor X's mentally unbalanced (yet frightfully powerful) son, Legion, had gone back in time to slay Magneto. Xavier thwarts Legion's efforts and sacrifices himself to save his friend, thus birthing a chain of events that would bring about an age of darkness and genocide. Magnus attempts to fill the void left by Xavier but must face a threat in the form of Apocalypse, an ancient mutant demigod who champions the rule of mutants over humans with the most powerful mutants gathered about his throne of skulls (oddly enough filling the role Magneto would play if not for Legion's manipulation of the time stream). [Note- this back story is not presented in this volume, although it would make much more sense than the inclusion of the Blink series at the end]

In this first volume the Age of Apocalypse unfolds in (mostly) chronological order. The first chapter (and in my humble opinion the one reason that this collection is worth buying) shows us Apocalypse's first (modern) declaration of war against the "genetically inferior", and a time when Magneto's X-Men were at peace in the sanctuary of Mt. Wundagore. The Four Horsemen, along with Sabertooth, strike at Cape Citadel (where Magneto strikes in Uncanny X-Men #1), but the X-Men intervene and save the day, but at a high cost: Magneto suffers a diminishment in power and the loss of a child.

Other items included are the meeting between Cyclops (a high ranking officer in Apocalypse's régime) and (his father) Corsair; the beginning of the romance between Rogue and Magnus; a battle between the X-Men and what has become of the Inhumans on the Blue Area of the Moon; the origin of the X-Man (the AOA's version of Cable); and the Blink mini-series (possibly the greatest flaw in this volume due to its relevance to the Exiles over the AOA overall).

Overall Vol. 1 of the AOA is good but I recommend that new readers to purchase the later volumes and only pick this one up if you can't get enough of the AOA (but even then the New Age of Apocalypse is a better outlet for such a craving).